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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. fall — to drop
  3. fall — the season
  4. wound — an injury
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. fine — high quality
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. tear — to rip
  11. last — to go on
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. wound — an injury
  14. last — final
  15. wake — a trail
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. fall — to drop
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — from crying
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. last — finally
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. fine — all right

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com